Personal Digital Archiving 2014 explores the
intersections between individuals, public institutions, and private companies
engaged in the creation, preservation and ongoing use of the digital records of
our daily lives. The conference reflects upon the current status of personal
archiving, its achievements, challenges, issues, and needs as evidenced through
research, education, case studies, practitioner experiences, best practices,
the development of tools and services, storage options, curation, and economic
sustainability. There is also interest in the role of libraries, archives and
other cultural heritage organizations in supporting personal digital archiving
through outreach or in conjunction with developing community history
collections.

The PDA 2014 Program Committee invites
proposals on a full range of topics relevant to personal digital archiving from
everyone who seeks to ensure long-term access and preservation for personal
collections and archives. Case studies that illustrate effective ways to help
users and institutions manage personal digital archives are especially
encouraged. Presentations might also address materials and format challenges
including family archives of photographs and home movies, personal health and
financial data, scrapbooking, social network posts, genealogy, blogs, email and
other correspondence. Presentations might explore how personal digital archives
are being used in the research conducted within various scholarly disciplines
and how such use impacts research methodologies. Themes that unite digital
archives, including interface design for archives; institutional practices;
community outreach; tools; and funding models are welcomed. Additionally the
program committee encourages proposals exploring the following questions:

What social contexts shape what people
decide to preserve and make accessible about their lives over time?

How do we preserve the ability to access
digital content over time when every app/community/network has a lifecycle that
involves the end of its existence?

Is there too much fragmentation and
reinvention of the wheel in the PDA field? Are there collaborative models to
consider to encourage greater efficiency?

How should libraries, museums and archives
collect personal digital materials? How do we better share our knowledge and
communicate about our work (including the failures as well as the successes)?

How are archivists, curators, genealogists
using born-digital and/or digitized material in their research?

What are some practical strategies for
helping libraries, museums and archives conduct personal archiving outreach to
their communities?

How can individuals be encouraged to
undertake personal digital archiving activities?

What are effective strategies and best
practices for personal digital archiving in social media and ecommerce
settings?

What is the best way to integrate scanning
of analog materials into personal digital archiving while recognizing that
digitization isn't digital preservation?

What tools and services now exist to help
with personal archiving? What do we need to make the process easier or more
effective?

What storage options are currently
available; how do they compare with one another; and what can we expect to see
in the near future? How do we address scalability issues?

What are viable existing economic models
that can support personal archives? What new economic models should we
evaluate?

What are the key issues associated with
digital estate planning and "the digital afterlife"?

How can users work with social media
companies for better APIs and/or download services to get usefully formatted
export of personal data?

How do Terms of Service vary for social
media networks and cloud-based services, particularly in connection with
ownership, copyright, privacy and liability?

The conference program will include three
types of presentations: 20-minute papers, 5-minute lightning talks, and posters
(including demos).